A labor tribunal in the United Kingdom has argued that the use of the word “bald” as an insult is linked to a “protected gender characteristic”.
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Calling a man bald can now be classified as sexual harassment, a UK employment judge has ruled.
Three members of the tribunal, who decided on the decision and hinted at their own experience with hair loss, said baldness was more common in men than in women. Therefore, they argue that the use of the word “bald” as an insult is related to a “protected gender characteristic”.
The tribunal compared naming a man bald to commenting on the size of a woman’s breasts based on a 1995 case.
The decision, released Wednesday, was made in a case that allegedly insulted Tony Finn while he worked as an electrician for Britain’s Bung Manufacturing Company.
Finn has worked for the brewing wooden barrel caps company in Yorkshire, in the north-east of England, for almost 24 years. He was fired last year and the circumstances surrounding his dismissal were also part of the case.
Finn claims to have been called “bald with —” and was also threatened by his shift boss, Jamie King, in a dispute in July 2019.
The tribunal ruled that the use of this insult was “a violation against the plaintiff.” [Finn] dignity, created an embarrassing … environment for him, was done for that purpose and was related to the sex of the plaintiff. “
Members of the tribunal also suggested that the problem was not the use of obscene language, and found that Finn used such language in the workplace: “Although, as we find, industrial language was common for this plant in West Yorkshire, At the discretion of Mr King, he crossed the line by making personal remarks to the plaintiff as to his appearance. ”
Finn will receive compensation according to the tribunal’s decision, although the amount has not yet been determined.
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